[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 93 (Friday, May 13, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Page 29871]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-11317]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Office of the Secretary


Findings of Research Misconduct

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary, HHS.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given that the Office of Research Integrity 
(ORI) has taken final action in the following case:
    John G. Pastorino, Ph.D., Rowan University School of Osteopathic 
Medicine: Based on an assessment conducted by Rowan University School 
of Osteopathic Medicine (RUSOM), the Respondent's desire to conclude 
the matter, and analysis conducted by ORI in its oversight review, ORI 
found that Dr. John G. Pastorino, Associate Professor, Department of 
Molecular Biology, RUSOM, engaged in research misconduct in research 
supported by National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism 
(NIAAA), National Institutes of Health (NIH), grant R01 AA012897 and 
National Cancer Institute (NCI), NIH, grant R01 CA118356.
    ORI found that Respondent engaged in research misconduct by 
intentionally falsifying and/or fabricating data reported in the 
following eight (8) published papers, one (1) unpublished manuscript, 
and one (1) NIH grant application:

 J. Cell. Sci. 123:894-902, 2010 (hereafter referred to as ``J. 
Cell. Sci. 2010a'')
 J. Cell. Sci. 123:4117-4127, 2010 (hereafter referred to as 
``J. Cell. Sci. 2010b'')
 J. Cell. Sci. 125:2995-3003, 2012 (hereafter referred to as 
``J. Cell. Sci. 2012'')
 J. Cell. Sci. 126:274-288, 2013 (hereafter referred to as ``J. 
Cell. Sci. 2013'')
 J. Cell. Sci. 127:896-907, 2014 (hereafter referred to as ``J. 
Cell. Sci. 2014'')
 Biol. Open. 1-11:10;bio.014712, 2015 (hereafter referred to as 
``Biol. Open. 2015'')
 BioChim Biophys Acta. 1827:38-49, 2013 (hereafter referred to 
as ``BioChim Biophys Acta. 2013'')
 J. Biol. Chem. 289:26213-26225, 2014 (hereafter referred to as 
``J. Biol. Chem. 2014'')
 J. Cell. Science, Submitted manuscript, 2015 (hereafter 
referred to as ``J. Cell. Sci. manuscript 2015'')
 R01 HL132672-01, ``Regulation by Sirtuin-3 and Mitoneet of the 
Permeability Transition Pore in Heart during Ischemia/Reperfusion 
Injury,'' John Pastorino, Ph.D., Principal Investigator ORI found that 
Dr. Pastorino falsified and/or fabricated Western blot data for 
mitochondrial function related to cell/tissue injury, in fifty-eight 
(58) blot panels included in forty-two (42) figures in eight (8) 
publications, one (1) unpublished manuscript, and one (1) grant 
application. In the absence of valid Western blot images, the 
Respondent fabricated and/or falsified quantitative data in associated 
bar graphs, statistical analyses presented in figure legends, and 
related text.
    Specifically, ORI found that Respondent duplicated images, or 
trimmed and/or manipulated blot images from unrelated sources to 
obscure their origin, and relabeled them to represent different 
experimental results in:

 Figures 2A, 2C, 3B, 5A, 7B, and 8A in J. Cell. Sci. 2010a
 Figures 2B, 5A, 6A, and 6B in J. Cell. Sci. 2010b
 Figures 1A, 2A, 2B, 4C, 5A, 5B, 6A, 7A, 7B, and 7C in J. Cell. 
Sci. 2012
 Figures 4F, 5H, and 6A in J. Cell. Sci. 2013
 Figures 1B, 2B, 2C, 3A, 3B, and 4D in J. Cell. Sci. 2014
 Figures 3A and 6B in Biol. Open 2015
 Figure 2A in BioChim Biophys Acta. 2013
 Figures 1B, 3A, 4D, 5E, and 6C in J. Biol. Chem. 2014
 Figure 3A in J. Cell. Sci. manuscript 2015
 Figures 3, 8A, 12, and 13A in R01 HL132672-01 NIH grant 
application
    Dr. Pastorino has entered into a Voluntary Exclusion Agreement 
(Agreement) and has voluntarily agreed for a period of five (5) years, 
beginning on April 27, 2016:
    (1) To exclude himself from any contracting or subcontracting with 
any agency of the United States Government and from eligibility or 
involvement in nonprocurement programs of the United States Government 
referred to as ``covered transactions'' pursuant to HHS' Implementation 
(2 CFR part 376 et seq.) of OMB Guidelines to Agencies on 
Governmentwide Debarment and Suspension, 2 CFR part 180 (collectively 
the ``Debarment Regulations'');
    (2) that he will neither apply for nor permit his name to be used 
on any application, proposal, or other request for funds to the United 
States Government or any of its agencies, as defined in the Debarment 
Regulations; Respondent will further ensure that during the period of 
the voluntary exclusion, he will neither receive nor be supported by 
funds of the United States Government and its agencies made available 
through grants, subgrants, cooperative agreements, contracts, or 
subcontracts, as discussed in the Debarment Regulations; and
    (3) to exclude himself from serving in any advisory capacity to the 
U.S. Public Health Service (PHS) including, but not limited to, service 
on any PHS advisory committee, board, and/or peer review committee, or 
as a consultant.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Director, Office of Research 
Integrity, 1101 Wootton Parkway, Suite 750, Rockville, MD 20852, (240) 
453-8200.

Kathryn Partin,
Director, Office of Research Integrity.
[FR Doc. 2016-11317 Filed 5-12-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4150-31-P